“They Still Make You?” Tournament of Coons, Sambos, Buckdancers and Bedwenches

Colin Kaepernick and Donald Trump have been litmus tests for all of society concerning racism, prejudice, discrimination and bigotry. This has been particularly the case with the black community whom often feel that, in spite of 360 (Jamestown was 1605) out of 410 years of institutional and systematic obstacles setup purposefully against them succeeding, their lack of success is somehow their fault and their fault alone. Enter the self-loathing and often opportunistic black person.

Coons, Sambos, Buckdancers and Bedwenches

These are all terms used within the black community that essentially describe a black person who turns their back on the community through words and deeds. It’s important to define these terms which lend their names to our regions as well. Similar to the NCAA tournament, members of a region do not necessarily belong to that region (for example Maryland can be in the west bracket), but it’s important to give context to what it is that we are discussing. In spite of the different names, these are all coons we are talking about.

A coon was/is a person of african decent whose sole purpose was/is to entertain white people. These ‘coons’ started out as wearing black face, characterized by having big eyes and painting big red lips on their face. These people would tap dance, play instruments and sing. Modern day coons are blacks who play stereotypical roles and black entertainers that promote ignorance.

Sambo was a character in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. In the book, Quimbo and Sambo were two slaves-turned-foremen who lived and worked on the plantation where Uncle Tom died. Uncle Tom received his final fatal blows from “Sambo”, a black overseer who had won his position by “snitching” on other slaves, and being willing to torment and torture them at the behest of his master. Sambo was rewarded with power to command other slaves and his cruelty was without limits. The duo obliged their master, and by doing so were awarded privileges far beyond fellow slaves. They were designated as leaders by the slave owner who perceived a willingness on their part to take charge of their brethren on behalf of their master. The despicable Simon Legree, Uncle Tom’s third and final master (and the only “master” that had treated Tom cruelly), had Tom whipped to death by Sambo for refusing to deny his faith or betray the hiding place of two fugitive women.

Buck dancing is a folk dance that originated among African Americans during the era of slavery. It was largely associated with the North Carolina Piedmont and, later, with the blues. Now, it is literally the two words put together. The Buck is a large Black man who is proud, sometimes menacing, and always interested in White women.

Dancing is unnecesary dancing. Unnecessary dancing changes the focus of the argument. It moves the attention away from the ideals of the group and places it on the accolades of the individual. What winds up happening is the message gets lost in the confusion of what the movement is really all about. This special brand of cooning has always been the coward’s way of convincing his ever fearful master that they are going to run away from anything that even appears to look like self-respect and dignity. A coon will never give his master any reason to doubt his or her loyalty. They will stay in their lane. This gives us the buck dancer.

Bedwench is typically a term applied to females of African descent (but technically can be applied to all non-white women of all colors; i.e. yellow, black, brown , tan) who gives herself to white men of high status sexually in exchange for privileges, promotions, etc. at the expense of turning her back on the people in her community. The term originated from female ‘house slaves’ back during American slavery.

Uncle Tom – For more than a century, the Uncle Tom character has taken the rap for Quimbo and Sambo. Far from being a snitch, Tom lost his life protecting runaway slaves. The **reconstructed** Uncle Toms, or more appropriately, the “stage version” in what were called “Tom Shows” are passive, docile, unthinking Christians. Loyal and faithful to white employers, they are duplicitous in their dealings with fellow blacks. AKA, the pandering snitch.

You understand the terminology. You have the seeds and the brackets. Vote away and in one month you the voter will have determined who undermines the black community the most for the benefit of a white audience.